Antifriction device for drill pipe



' P 1932- E. w. soEsER ANTIFRICTION DEVICE FOR DRILL PIPE Filed May 14, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet //Vl 'EN Toe fa wm M aeser' 147- v-ezvEY, I"?

p 13, 1932- E. w. GOESER ANTIFRICTION DEVICE FORDRILL PIPE Filed May 14, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 f N6 f a 5 yam w ATTaeA/Ex w drillp'ipe 11 are connected together by tool 7 tended through a well casing12. The upper and lower ends of the drill pipe 11 are not shown but according to standard rotary drilling practice the lower end of the drill pipe is provided with a bit and the upper end thereof is driven by a rotary table of an oil sleeve bearing construction 36 form a chanwell derrick. The different sections ofthe joints or coupling members 14 which embody the features of this invention.

Referring particularly to Figs. 2to 1inelusive, the details of the invention wlll be described.

. The tool j ointsle consist of parts 15 and 16 which are threadedly connected at 17 to lengths of pipe 18 which comprise the drill pipe 11.' The parts 15 and 16 are connected together" by a body or supporting part '19.

-One end of the supporting part 19 is inter- 'nally threaded to receive a threaded portion vof the part 15, andthe other end of the body 19 is provided with an externally threaded portion 20 which is screwed into an internally threaded portion of thepart 16. The body 19 at the upper end is provided with a cylindrical'ne ck 23. At the'low'er end of the neck 23 -isqan annular. shoulder 24:- and at the upper end thereof is the externally threaded portion 20. Thebody 19 is also provided with .a central opening 26 to permit a flushing fluid to pass outward through the pipe 11.

Carried on the neck 23 of the body 19 is the -on the neck 23, adjacentto the shoulder 24 is a ballbearing construction 30 and'ar ranged on the neck 23 adjacent to the part 16 and the threaded end 20 is a ball bearing construction 31. Each of the ball be'aring construction s includes a race formed of two complementary race-parts 32 which cooperate to provide an annular channel 33 in which balls 34 0f the ball bearing constructions are retained; The channels 33 surround the balls tothe. extent that they cannot be removed from-place when the race-parts 32 are as- 1 construction 36 has an. inner non-rotatable sleeve 37 which surrounds the neck 23 in contact therewith. Surrounding the inner sleeve 37 is an outer rotatable bearing sleeve 38 which isjournaled on the inner sleeve 37 by 'bearing rollers -39. The bearing rollers 39 are arrangedin upper and lower pairs, and are and 31. r

spaced apart from each other by roller spac ing rings 10. The roller spacing rings 40 are cylindrical and are provided with elongated slots 41 in which the bearing rollers 39 are situated.

I The race members 32 and the inner nonrotatable sleeve 37 are pressed ontothe neck 23 of the body 19." When the parts are assembled, as shown in Fig. 2, the end of the part 16 engages the adjacent race member 32 and clamps the parts 32 and 37 against the shoulder 24 of thebody 19. The part 16 constitutes the clamping part of the invention.

The race members 32 adjacent to the nel in which the moving parts of the sleeve bearing construction 36 arev retained. Upon the inspection ofFig. 2 is will be seen that the inner sleeve 37 is slightly longer than the outer bearing sleeve 38 so that the sleeve 7 also constitute the means of the invention for protecting the bearing sleeve 38 from wear.

The' bearing balls 34 of the ball bearing constructions 30 and 31 are adapted to have a c1rcumferent1alline contact with the wall of the well casing 12.- In designing the inventionthe diameter ofthis circumferential line contact is made the sameas the diameter of the engaging face-of the sleeve bearing 38. The sleevebearing- 38 constitutes the bearing 'means of the invention for absorbing 'rotational friction or hor zontal friction.

. As shown in Fig. 1 the anti-friction hearing assembly of the invention is shown in contact with the left side of the well casing 12. 1 In the ordinary anti-friction device which employs only ball bearing construction, the contact between the bearing and the wall of the well casing is a line contact and a depression is quickly formed. in the" well casing, which considerably reduces its strength. In the present nvention the sleeve 38 provides a large area of contactbetween the bearing and the pipe so that it is impossible for the ball bearings or 31'to cause depressions in the well casing 12.

lVhen'the drill pipe 11 is being lowered or friction. ordinary sleeve type anti-friction bearing the part of the sleeve which engages. the well casing is worn fiat so that the sleeve is irregular in shape. In my invention the ball bearing constructions 30 and 31' prevent excessive frictional wear on the sleeve 38. This is because of the fact that during a longitudinal move ment of the drill pipe the bearing balls 34 are raised in the well there is a longitudinal As pointed. out heretofore, in the free to rotate. The anti-friction device is guided over the contour or thewell casing 12 by means of the ball bearing constructions30 It is possible to construct the device of the invention on the ball bearing constructions either at the top or at the bottom of the sleeve bearing construction 36. The preferred form of construction, however, has the ball bearing constructions 30 and 31 at the opposite ends of the ball bearing construction 36. The invention operates most satisfactorily when the y spaced bearings on: said supporting -.n1eans,

circumferential line contact of the ball bearing constructions 30 and 31 has the same diameter as the bearing surface of the bearing sleeve 38. It is possible to change these diameters slightly, and good results are obtained if the diameter of the circumferential line contact of the ball bearing constructions 30 and 31 is slightly larger than the sleeve hearing construction 36. When such a construction is utilized the bearing balls 34 will make 1 slight depressions in the well casing, but these depressions are not great enough to cause appreciable injury to the well casing. During the raising and lowering of the drill pipe the bearing ballsBl will keep the sleeve 38 out of contact with the well casing so that there is no frictional wear on the sleeve 38.

The feature of combination'of the bearing means for absorbing rotational friction and the bearing means for absorbing longitudinal friction does not require the assembling features also present in the invention. 'As an example, these features. are independent of the manner in which the parts are clamped in place. It is therefore obvious that this feature of the invention may embody any other designs of anti-friction devices which do not also possess the features of assembly of this invention.

Features of design which relate to the manner of assembling the parts of the invent-ion and the manner in which they are secured on the supporting part 19 are independent of the features of the types of bearings used in the invention. Therefore it will be obvious that these features of design and assembly may be utilized in constructions independently of the combination of the bearing for absorbing rotational friction and the bearing for absorbing longitudinal friction.

I claim asmy invention 1. An anti-friction device for drill pipe comprising: a sleeve bearing for absorbing friction during a rotary movement of the drill pipe; and a bearing above and a bearing below said sleeve bearing for absorbing friction during a longitudinal movement of the drill pipe.

2. An anti-friction device for drill pipe comprising: a sleeve bearing adapted to absorb friction during a rotary movement of the drill pipe; and means on opposite sides of aid sleeve bearing and independent thereof for protecting said sleeve bearing from wear during a longitudinal movement of the drill r plpe.

3. An anti-friction device for drill pipe comprising i sleeve bearing having an extern-al contact face and a ball bearing mounted adjacent to said sleeve bearing, said ball "4.1 An anti-friction' device for dri'll pipe comprising: supporting means; hpalr of said spaced bearings 'beinginposition for externalengagenientdraring movement of the adr-lll plp'e 1nlon-g1tudinal direction; and a sleeve bearing retained adjacent to and between said spaced bearmgmeansiand on said supporting means, said sleeve bearing being adapted to engage the well casing during I'O-r' tatio'no'fsaid drill pipe.

5. Ananti-fr iction-device for drill pipe comprising; a supporting p art having aineck, a'shoulder at oneend of'saidlneck and threads at-the other end of said neck; a bearing assembly placed on said neck, having'a movable sleeve adapted to engage a well casing and ball bearings adapted to engage said well casing; and a-clam-pi-ng part screwed onto said supporting part, said clamping part clampilng the non m'ovable parts against said shoulc er. i

6. An anti-friction device for drill pipe comprising: a supporting part having a neck,

a shoulder at one end of said neck and threads at the other end of said neck; a bearing assem bly arranged on said neck; ball bearings mounted on said neck above and below said bearing assembly, saidball bearings being adapted to engage a well casing; and a clamping part screwed on the end of said'neck, said clamping part clamping said ball bearing against said bearing assembly and said bearing assembly against said shoulder.

comprising: a supporting part having" a neck, a shoulder at one end of said neck and threads at the other end of said neck; a ball bearing seated on the shoulder of said neck; a sleeve bearing assembly arranged on said neck above said ball bearing, said sleeve bearing having movable and non-movable parts; a ball bearing disposed above said sleeve bearing; and

a clamping part screwed onto said supporti 7. An anti-friction device for drill pipe clamping part clamping said ballbearing against said bearing assembly and the nonmovable parts of said bearing assembly I against said shoulder.

v is

' 9. An anti-friction device for rotary drill pipe comprising: a supporting part and a pipe joint part associated therewith, a neck on said supporting parthaving threads at one end and a shoulder at the other end;

a ball bearing assembly seated on said shoulder; and a sleeve bearin assembly disposed on said neck above. said ball bear1ng.assembly, said pipe joint part adapted to be screwed onto the threaded end of said neck and against said sleeve bearing assembly for clampingf said bearing assemblies on said'supporting v part., e 7

- 10. An anti-friction device for rotary drill pipe comprising: a supporting part and a pipe joint part associated thereWith, a neck on said supporting part having threads at one end and a shoulder at the other end; a ball bearing seated on the shoulder of said neck; a sleeve bearing mounted on said neck and engaging said ball bearing; and a ball bearing mounted adjacent said sleeve bearing, andsaid pipe joint part adapted to be r screwed onto said supporting part for clamping said bearings upon said neck.

4 In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand at Los Angeles,- California,this 1st day of May, 1928. p

' W.-GQESER.

L gs g V, 

